Milhaud: Composer, Pianist & Conductor

Martial Singher (Performer), Darius Milhaud (Composer), Darius Milhaud (Conductor, Performer), Orchestre National (Orchestra), New York Philharmonic (Orchestra), Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of New York (Orchestra), Marguerite Long (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Martial Singher, Darius Milhaud, Marguerite Long
• Orchestra: Orchestre National, New York Philharmonic, Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra of New York
• Conductor: Darius Milhaud
• Composer: Darius Milhaud
• Audio CD (February 27, 2001)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Pearl
• ASIN: B0000542HF
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #833,257 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Work(s): [Unspecified] Concerto for piano and orchestra

2. Work(s): [Unspecified] Concerto for piano and orchestra

3. Work(s): [Unspecified] Concerto for piano and orchestra

4. Concertino de printemps, for violin & chamber orchestra (or piano), Op. 135

5. String Quartet No. 7, Op. 87: Modérément animé

6. String Quartet No. 7, Op. 87: Doux et sans hâte

7. String Quartet No. 7, Op. 87: Lent

8. String Quartet No. 7, Op. 87: Vif et gai

9. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 1, 'La separation'

10. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 2, 'Le chant du veilleur'

11. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 3, 'Chant de deliverance'

12. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 4, 'Berceuse'

13. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 5, 'Gloire a Dieu'

14. Chants populaires hébraïques (6), song cycle for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 86: No. 6, 'Chant hassidique'

15. La création du monde, ballet for orchestra, Op. 81

16. Suite française (5), for orchestra, Op. 248b: No. 1, 'Normandie'

17. Suite française (5), for orchestra, Op. 248b: No. 2, 'Bretagne'

18. Suite française (5), for orchestra, Op. 248b: No. 3, 'Ile-de-France'

19. Suite française (5), for orchestra, Op. 248b: No. 4, 'Alsace-Lorraine'

20. Suite française (5), for orchestra, Op. 248b: No. 5, 'Provence'

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

A beguiling disc of vintage performances composed, conducted, accompanied, or supervised by Darius Milhaud himself. Marguerite Long's light touch is perfect for the lucid, transparent Concerto, whose second movement, a lapping barcarole, clings to the memory. The Violin Concertino is an eight-minute tuneful gem redolent of springtime; Milhaud later added three brief pieces to form his Four Seasons. The Quartet is a slight charmer, with what sounds like a hoedown in the finale. The song cycle is based on Eastern European Jewish melodies, and it's beautifully sung by the young Martial Singher. By far the best-known work is La Création du Monde.

Milhaud leads an idiomatically oily small French orchestra in a performance that sounds more Pigalle and less jazzy than those we're used to by Bernstein, Carew, or Munch. The Suite Française is another slight charmer, short pieces based on provincial dances. There's more to Milhaud than meets the ear here but, aside from the songs, it's a fine sampler of the lighthearted boulevardier aspect of his work in the 1920s and 1930s. An appealing disc made valuable by the composer's authoritative presence. --Dan Davis